Touch-sensitive electronics can include a wide array of devices such as: tablet and notebook computers, netbooks, ATMs, POS or information kiosks, ticket-dispensing machines, portable media players, personal digital assistants, monitors, televisions, tablets, i-devices and Mobile Internet Devices or MIDs such as multi-media and Internet-enabled smart phones. Touch surfaces allow users of these devices to input commands, engage in data entry or otherwise control an actionable object or on-screen graphic through touch—typically by finger, thumb or stylus contact. The touch surface senses the coordinates of the “touch,” through any of the varying means of touch-sensitive technologies, including those that are capacitive and resistive governed. The coordinate data registered via “touch-sensing” can then be relayed to the device's controller (or processor) for processing and can further be utilized by software associated with applications running on an electronic device with a touch surface to initiate a desired action.
In a capacitive-sensor system, the touch surface, typically glass coated with a material such as indium tin oxide to enhance conductivity across a sensor device, acts as a sensor. The capacitive-sensor system utilizes a conductive input, usually a user's finger, to register touch. Finger contact with the capacitive-based touch surface alters the electrostatic field, which is then interpreted by the processor and device's software, translating this touch into a gesture or command. Respective capacitive touch surfaces feature electrostatic-field monitoring circuitry, with points that can be arranged in the form of a grid. Each point on the grid is designed to register changes in electrostatic fields and process them accordingly, making multi-touch and multi-gestures possible.
Touch-sensitive devices, such as tablet computers, can run a wide variety of applications, including simulator applications intended to emulate the appearance and functionality of a physical control panel, such as a flight management computer (FMC) panel found in the cockpit of an aircraft. Indeed, numerous flight simulator applications have been developed for touch-sensitive devices, and such applications are widely used by recreational pilots and other aircraft enthusiasts. Despite their popularity, flight simulator applications running on touch-sensitive devices frequently cannot provide adequate tactile feedback to a user desiring to simulate actual operation of a physical control panel, such as an FMC panel. The same is true of a wide variety of other touch-sensitive applications, especially those intended to simulate interaction with a physical control panel of some kind.
Due to the inherent limitations of touch-sensitive devices, flight training for professional commercial or military pilots has often been limited to actual aircraft, fixed-base or full-flight simulators. Training on systems is also available by Computer Based Training (CBT), technical manuals or classroom instruction. Such flight simulation and training systems can provide users with the requisite tactile feedback to simulate actual flight deck operations. However, such simulation systems are often quite expensive and large, making them impractical for implementation on portable touch-sensitive devices.